


Tightrope

by saisei



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-22
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:08:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22599898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saisei/pseuds/saisei
Summary: Joined on his quest for his ancestral arms by Lunafreya, Noct struggles to redefine his destiny.
Relationships: Lunafreya Nox Fleuret/Noctis Lucis Caelum, Lunafreya Nox Fleuret/Noctis Lucis Caelum/Ignis Scientia, Noctis Lucis Caelum/Ignis Scientia
Comments: 5
Kudos: 51
Collections: Chocolate Box - Round 5





	Tightrope

**Author's Note:**

  * For [egelantier](https://archiveofourown.org/users/egelantier/gifts).



Noct let Ignis drive from Galdin Quay back up to Insomnia. His head was spinning, and his mood swung between grief and fury. Next to him, Gladio was rigid with his own dark thoughts. Prompto kept blurting out random thoughts due to his nerves, and Ignis replied with a steel edge to his usual compassion. Noct supposed they were all in shock, but how the fuck else could they be expected to react?

Every news report said that Insomnia had fallen, that his father the King was dead, Gladio's father as well. Ignis had to be worried for his own family; hell, even Prompto would never have wished his parents dead.

Ignis insisted that the media – now entirely under Niflheim's control – was not to be trusted. After all, at least half of the radio broadcasts also said Noct had died in the attack, yet there he sat, eminently alive.

 _There's hope_ , Ignis insisted, meeting Noct's eyes for a moment in the rear-view mirror.

Noct didn't feel hopeful when they had to veer away from an Imperial roadblock, or when they stood at the head of the cliff looking out over the ocean toward his city, burning and patrolled by enemy airships. Niflheim had unleashed daemons on the heart of Insomnia. Noct would never forgive them.

But when they finally met up with Cor, he was escorting Luna, disguised in an oversized gray hoodie and trousers. She looked exhausted, and Noct chucked all propriety aside, wrapping her up in his arms and telling her things would be better now that he was here.

He wasn't usually a fan of comforting lies, but Luna didn't seem to mind, which in turn was almost enough to make Noct believe himself. Cor intended to escort Luna down to Altissia; Noct didn't see the point of doing that. Cor still had people working inside and outside Insomnia to manage, the Regalia seated five, and (selfishly) Noct wanted all the people he cared for where he could see them at all times.

They rented two trailers at the hunter outpost, and it was agreed that Ignis would stay with Luna because he had impeccable manners and would protect her with the same ferocity as he would Noct, if necessary. But Noct needed to talk to Luna in private, so Ignis excused himself.

"I am so dreadfully sorry about your father," Luna said, breaking the tense silence between them.

"Yeah." Noct tried to maintain the anger he'd been using to stave off grief, but it drained away under Luna's steady gaze. "Me too."

And then the tears came. Luna held Noct as he cried, sobbing while resenting every tear. When he was emptied out he raised his head and saw Luna was weeping as well.

"My brother," she said, defensively, wiping her face on her sleeve. But then she added, "I had to kill people to escape. I would do it again – I would have to – I must be strong – "

Her voice was as light as a gas leak, devastation one small spark away.

Noct kissed her, first on the cheek and then on the lips, because he wanted to take her pain away but he couldn't, and because he had the half-formed notion that kissing was the done thing. After all, they'd been engaged, briefly, even if that had just been the bait of a trap.

Luna kissed back with fervent intensity. That led to touching, hands learning the warmth of each others' skin. They got, Noct thought, drunk on that proximity, which made it easier to pull off clothes so they were naked except for bruises and dirt. Luna showed Noct how to get her off with his fingers, and then – emboldened, and fortified with knowledge from furtive Moogle searches – with his head between her thighs, dizzy with the taste of her and the reverence he felt when she cried out and came again. She pushed him off, breathless, and he shifted up so he could see all of her: eyes darkened with passion, her breasts that needed kissing, the damp curls between her legs. He was so entranced that he came at her first tentative poke at his dick, and wasn't embarrassed because while Luna laughed she also held him close and said _I love you_.

"Yeah," Noct said before he realized that wasn't romantic. "I mean. I do, too."

Luna's smile was brilliant in the low evening light, and she kissed him again, even though his mouth was full of the taste of her.

They showered together and dressed, and leaned on each other for support when they went outside, where everyone knew what they'd been up to. Prompto turned as red as a traffic signal but still took entirely inappropriate commemorative photos. Gladio dragged Noct aside and said he'd better have used protection. ("We didn't do _that_ ," Noct protested, but Gladio showed him where condoms were in the Armiger anyway.)

Ignis simply acted as if he hadn't noticed Noct and Luna had had sex. Maybe it was better that way. By unspoken agreement, Noct and Luna slept in the caravan bed that night, while Ignis bedded down in a sleeping bag in the corridor. He was unobtrusive, gone already by the time Noct woke with Luna in his arms.

*

When Ignis drove, Luna and Noct took turns sitting next to the window in the back seat. When Noct was behind the wheel, Prompto took the back middle seat to save Ignis' legs, and Luna rode shotgun and chose the music. Despite how the others teased, Noct hadn't been worried that he wouldn't get on with Luna: after all, they'd been writing to each other for years. She knew things about him no one else did.

Like how he suspected Ignis was in love with him, even though that made him sound full of himself. Luna'd asked him if he felt the same way, and he'd never replied. Which probably had been enough of an answer. But he was the King and she was the Oracle, and getting together was what was supposed to happen, according to all of the legends and prophesies and lore. Surely Ignis knew that; had always known, and that was why he kept his feelings to himself, just as Noct had.

They had other, more important matters to worry about, and that let Noct off the hook from having to think too much about his feelings and his relationships. He'd learned from his father that being a King meant having to think about the big picture instead, and he was busy gathering ancestral weapons, working with Luna to forge covenants with the gods themselves, staying away from Imperials, assisting Luna in strengthening the Haven's connection to Eos' life-force, and healing people of Scourge on the down-low.

Amid all the danger and strife, Ignis was a steady comforting presence at Noct's side, and Noct could live with that. He'd make himself not want more, and he trusted Ignis not to ask for it. After all, he never had. Like everyone else, he'd expected Noct to rule with Luna at his side, as his Oracle and his wife. Ignis should be pleased, even, Noct decided, and then made himself stop turning the worry over and over in his head.

*

Even after the Imperials infiltrated the Assassin's Festival, Noct had a stupid amount of fun. He and Prompto and Luna got to sneak around the city's alleys and rooftops and kick the bad guys' asses _in cosplay_ , and by the time he'd looped Gladio and Ignis in the problem was already taken care of. Prompto'd been teaching Luna how to shoot, and she was beautifully merciless.

They all went out for skewers afterward, and Noct let Gladio yell at him for putting himself in danger. It hadn't felt like that at all. Like the Leap of Faith, Noct had known he'd land just fine, so he hadn't been worried. He sat with his shoulder pressed to Luna's; she was looking over Prompto's photos, telling him which ones to keep and which to delete. Under the table, his hand was on her bare knee.

Ignis excused himself while they were ordering a second platter, saying something about supplies, which Noct thought was weird.

"Let him go," Gladio said. "It's been a long day."

Noct rolled his eyes. They'd had plenty of longer days. He pulled his phone out and set it on the table, which made him feel a bit better, as if Ignis was just a text away. "It wouldn't kill him to spend some time with his friends." _Me._ "He's always making excuses. And he's not the adult," Noct put airquotes around the words, "of our group. Luna's older. So are you."

"Dude," Prompto said, his expression pinched like he was hiding bad news.

"What?" Noct resented feeling like everyone knew something he didn't. He wondered if Ignis had gone to hook up with someone. Just the thought of it made his stomach drop. He didn't want Ignis to stop loving him or wanting him, even though Noct was destined to be with Luna. He knew that was selfish, but thinking of Ignis with another person – some stranger – felt like... Insomnia falling.

He knew he didn't have the right to make demands, especially since he and Luna were as good as married now; he didn't care.

"I'm getting more beer," Gladio said. "Come help."

Noct dropped the subject because he didn't want to sour the fun of the festival, especially not for Luna, who'd never even heard of the Assassin's Creed games. But he was determined to talk to Ignis when they got back to the hotel. Clear the air.

Except when he let himself into their room, Ignis was curled up under his blanket on the bed by the door, apparently sound asleep. His hair was damp from the shower, and his chest rose and fell with the rhythm of his breaths, deep and slow.

Noct told Luna to go ahead and take the first shower, and as soon as she shut the door he said, "I know you're faking, Specs. What gives?" He sat down on the edge of Ignis' bed to make it clear that he wasn't going away.

Ignis kept up the charade for a few more breaths, and then let out an irritated sigh. "Is it too much to ask for one evening by myself?"

The words hurt, even moreso because Noct knew Ignis meant them to. But he put his knee-jerk anger aside and focused on trying to figure Ignis out. "Are you sick?" That would explain the grumpiness; Ignis was a terrible patient. And he did sound stuffed up. Noct put his hand on Ignis' forehead.

Ignis reached up and brushed his arm away. "I appreciate your concern, but I'm perfectly fine. Just a bit wearied by the day's events."

"You're in love," Luna said from behind Noct, startling him into nearly falling off the bed. She was getting too good at stealth. Ignis' fingers on his wrist tightened reflexively. "It must be _wearying_ – though I'd say heartbreaking – to always keep your true feelings hidden." She moved closer, to stand by the foot of the bed. "You needn't."

Ignis was silent for a moment, and then gave an irritated huff. "I suppose you find it pathetic."

"The world is falling into darkness, the gods speak in riddles, our fates are not our own – there are very many things I rail against, but love in all its forms is precious to me." She sat at the foot of the bed, wearing Prompto's yellow chocobo tracksuit, and the ridiculousness of it made her look like... just a person. Not like the Oracle or Tenebrae's leader, someone who cowed the gods themselves into lending their aid. She had dark circles under her eyes, because the magic she used demanded more of her than she could safely give, but her smile was hopeful as she laid one hand on Ignis' ankle. "You love Noct, as do I. Why can't we love him together? It's selfish, but it harms no one. Does it?"

Ignis curled up to sitting, with the sleek grace of a coeurl. "I beg your pardon." His voice had a Glacian chill, as if Luna'd offered him the worst kind of insult.

Noct wasn't good with words, but Luna's words had created a fragile hope that he'd be damned if he let be murdered by etiquette, so he grabbed a fistful of Ignis' shirt to hold him in place and twisted around to kiss him. Not on the cheek, but on the mouth, rough and impatient, as if he could breathe understanding and acceptance into Ignis, make him not reject Luna's proposal out of stubborn pride or pointless adherence to social strictions. Noct had always known that a king could never take a husband, only a wife, but he was fated to be Lucius' last king... and Lucis' aristocracy no longer existed to dictate who he could and could not love.

"Noct," Ignis said, breathless and flushed. Not exactly a protest; nearly a plea. "This is entirely – "

"Ignis." Noct clung to him, feeling as if they were poised at the brink of something less momentous than... simple.

Luna stood and kissed both of them on the forehead, then checked that the door was locked before announcing that she was going to take a long bath and they'd best make use of the time wisely.

As soon as the bathroom door shut, Noct pushed Ignis back onto the mattress and had his way with him. He couldn't help making comparisons between Ignis and Luna: Ignis being taller and made of solid muscle, unable to stop himself from making terrible puns even during sex, and utterly certain that what they were doing was a perversion and violation that he was being allowed just this once, usurping the rightful place of Noct's destined partner.

Once he'd made Noct come he attempted to pull away, as if getting to suck the royal dick was all the fulfillment he needed. Noct disagreed and returned the favor – clumsily, of course, because he only had experience with Luna, but he learned quickly.

Luna emerged while they were still dazed from orgasm. She turned off the lights and got into bed on Ignis' other side, as if she and Noct had conspired to trap him in bed. A good plan, Noct decided, and drifted off to sleep.

*

The next day, Noct overheard Gladio saying to Luna, " _That's_ your solution? It sucks."

She told him – in clipped polite words – to fuck off, and Noct let himself not worry about their exchange. He clung to the belief that everything was great: he loved two people, they loved him back, and he didn't need to hide or deny how he felt.

But then he woke up after Altissia and realized what Gladio had been afraid of: now _Ignis_ had two people he'd do anything for, up to and including setting himself on fire with the Ring of the Lucii. Noct found it hard to look at him because he couldn't avoid seeing his scars, and he didn't know what to say to him. How to apologize.

Luna had given him the ring before raising Leviathan, and when they'd been dying in each other's arms she'd used her powers to heal him, even as he'd use the ring to call on the crystal and the ancient kings. They'd both survived but had been unconscious for days, and in that time there was no one to save Ignis' eyesight. He said it was _a small sacrifice_. But he didn't come to Noct for comfort, or join Noct and Luna in the hotel's king-sized bed, that they knew from experience slept three comfortably.

Ignis had pulled himself back and away, and Noct didn't know how to reach him or what was going through his head. Ignis had entrusted his recovery to Prompto, and Gladio said to leave him alone. He didn't go so far as to blame Ignis' rashness on his relationship with Noct and Luna, but he implied that was over now anyway. And good riddance.

Luna remained weak after nearly draining herself to save Noct, and Ravus demanded that he be allowed to take her home to Tenebrae to recover. Noct hated the idea of splitting their group up, but he doubted Luna'd be safe in Gralea, where Ravus said the crystal was being kept. He watched Ignis struggling with his blindness and wondered whether he should order him to stay behind as well.

But Ignis insisted on going into the Fodina Caestino mine with Noct, instead of staying behind with Luna and Ravus. Despite tripping on the uneven ground and being dangerously disoriented in battle, he still was able to devise a way to defeat the malboro and gain entrance to the buried tomb. On their way back he informed Noct that he intended to stay at his side as long as Noct so wished. Gladio registered his protest, but... like hell Noct was going to dismiss Ignis, who was trying so hard, and who loved him so well.

He wanted more than anything to take Ignis in his arms right there and kiss him, but he knew he shouldn't, not when Ignis was demanding his right to remain in the Crownsguard. That was the business of the king; and the last thing Noct wanted to do was imply that Ignis was being retained because he was good in bed, if not for much else.

He hoped to get time alone with Ignis on the train to Tenebrae, and maybe finally talk about relationship stuff. Tell Ignis he loved him, and that Luna was just as concerned as he was that Ignis had pulled back and away. But instead Gladio yanked him into the quasi-private space between cars and yelled at him for _thinking with his dick_ and _fucking up international relations_ (meaning Ravus, Noct assumed) and _acting like a hormonal teenager and not a king_.

"How I act is how the king acts," Noct pointed out, shaking with anger and frustration. He was trying to save the world and honor the deal his ancestors had made with his life; how dare Gladio demand that he keep up appearances while doing so.

Gladio crossed his arms, glaring down at Noct. "I spoke to Iggy, he agrees with me. Which you'd know if you even bothered to talk to him after he nearly killed himself for you."

Noct's vision went red, and he had to turn on his heel and stalk away to keep himself from doing something very un-kinglike. The ring responded to anger more than any other emotion, which was one of the reasons he didn't like wearing it. It – or rather, the judgmental spirits of his ancestors trapped inside – was too eager to be the expression of his rage.

He went looking for Prompto, who'd gone off to the dining car, hoping that some of his bubbly enthusiasm could ease his mood. But he was found by Ardyn instead. Noct chased him down, not letting any of his tricks distract him, but ended up throwing Prompto off the train roof to his horror. Luna said it wasn't his fault, and Noct started avoiding her. Ravus sneered at Noct for being so easily deceived by Ardyn's illusion; Noct grabbed at the opportunity to focus his anger and frustration on someone besides himself, and Gladio had to intervene before Noct and Ravus came to blows.

When they arrived at a ravaged Tenebrae flooded with refugees, though, Ravus took charge with a selflessness and passion that made Noct have to apologize to him, shamefaced.

"None of us are at our best," Ravus said. "But we are all governed by the mandate to do our best by the people of Eos."

"Indeed." Luna took his hand in hers, smiled wearily up at him, and told him she needed to go with Noct to Gralea.

Ravus cried, pressing his face to Luna's shoulder to hide his tears.

As they prepared to leave, Gladio took Noct to task for that as well – bad enough to allow Ignis to come with them, but Luna was weakened by the constant expenditure of her magic.

"She's the Oracle," Noct said. "Every ancient text and legend that references the prophecy of the True King – " he had to put that in air quotes, because it sounded so pretentious – "says the Oracle stands at his side."

"Next time you see Gentiana," Gladio said darkly, "I got a few things I want to get straight with her." He sighed, and Noct knew him well enough to read the raw fear under his angry bluster. "You better not still be thinking with your dick."

"Better than being a dick," Noct snapped. He was so tired of all this fighting; Prompto was gone, Ignis was blind, and Luna was dying by increments, just as his father had been. His fingers twitched, as if calling for the ring, and he wondered how much Gladio hated knowing that after everything went down, he might be the only one left. "The days are getting shorter. Ardyn's plan is working. You may not respect me, but I'm going to stop him anyway. I need you with me."

Gladio grimaced in apology, and then pulled Noct into a rough, unexpected hug. His massive hands on Noct's back sent warmth up his spine. "Wish it didn't have to be like this," he said, regret lacing the words. "You're getting better at being king, though."

"Gee, thanks." Noct didn't really agree, but... he wanted to be worthy, like his father, and the ancestral kings before him.

The infiltration of Zegnautus Keep was harrowing, but at the same time almost too easy. Noct and Luna became separated from Gladio and Ignis, and had to fight their way to a reunion; but finding Prompto after that was suspiciously easy, and then it turned out Prompto had been tattooed with a key that opened every door that stood in their way. A tide of daemons was unleashed on them, but when Noct and Luna ran ahead to find the crystal, the path was nearly clear. In an ominous way.

Noct wasn't surprised that the crystal itself was a trap. But reaching out for it in appeal, for aid, and being pulled inexorably forward, through the stone and into a realm Beyond, felt like the worst betrayal imaginable. He tried to let go of Luna's hand and push her away, but she was drawn in at his side anyway, while behind them Ardyn raged, and mocked, and revealed that this had been his plan all along.

Noct couldn't reply; he was already too far ahead, in the realm of the gods.

*

 _I don't form covenants with humans,_ Bahamat said.

Luna raised her chin, staring him down. "I don't take no for an answer."

*

"Tell us more about Ardyn." Noct was getting weary of his confinement; he had no idea how much time was passing, and Bahamut never volunteered any information, instead waiting for the right question to be asked in the right way... and even then he only replied if it served his hidden purpose.

"Can the darkness be banished without his death?" Luna asked. "Is there nothing else that can be done?"

_He is the darkness._

Noct sighed. "Can we summon other, less cryptic gods here, or is that not how this works?"

*

When Noct finally awoke on Angelgard, he was disoriented, stumbling after Luna as she followed Umbra outside. He felt weirdly refreshed, as if he was fully alert and able to tap into limitless power; the way he'd always hoped he'd feel after a nap. But the sky outside was black and starless, and the wind had a bitter tang of corruption.

Luna's hair had grown down her back and was a tangled mess. Her white dress was bloodstained and tattered, and her eyes glinted in amusement as she looked at Noct. He must look just as bad. They pulled clothes from the Armiger and changed quickly, grabbing whatever was warm and practical, and then made their way down to the boat.

As they crossed the water, Noct could see daemons prowling on the shore. "How long has it been?" he asked Luna. "The whole hotel and everything's just – abandoned." He'd worried desperately about Ignis while he'd been inside the crystal, but at the very least he'd always imagined that Ignis would be alive and waiting for him. The world before them looked like humanity had lost, and dread coiled in his chest at the thought of his Crownsguard being forced to make a last stand, all the while praying for Noct to return.

"We will find out." Luna sounded certain, but her gaze raked the shore as if she was also looking for any sign of hope there.

Their unexpected salvation came in the form of an armored truck with daemon-repelling lights. Noct would have gotten in no matter who was driving, but he was shocked speechless when the man introduced himself as Talcott and caught them up on the state of the world.

The familiar comforts of Galdin Quay had been desecrated and depopulated. Noct could have easily believed it was some kind of vision sent by Bahamut, or a test. But Talcott's chatter was relentlessly normal, even though he was describing horrors. All the survivors packed into Lestallum and a few outposts; daemons roaming the landscape freely; an entire decade passed without the sun.

"Ten years," Luna repeated.

"Yes, my lady." As if sensing her unspoken impatience, he added, "Your brother King Ravus is doing a great job in Tenebrae. Keeping everyone safe. Even refugees fleeing Niflheim. They call him Ravus the Fierce." Talcott tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, taking a moment to concentrate on slipping past an iron giant at the side of the road. "Your friends are doing well, too, King Noctis. Gladio's heading up the defense forces in Lestallum these days, and Prompto's busy salvaging Imperial airships and armor and stuff, fixing it up. He's good with Magitek."

Noct tried not to sound impatient. "And Ignis?"

"He spent most of the time learning about the gods and the prophesies and Solheim and stuff. I've been in a few ruins with him, but mostly he goes with Aranea or Iris. They're all looking forward to seeing you," he added. "I won't say it hasn't been rough. But we knew you'd come back, so we kept the hearth fires burning. We're ready to fight, Your Majesty. Lady Lunafreya."

*

Noct took Talcott's words to heart, but he'd naively assumed that when he reached Hammerhead they wouldn't end up fighting _each other_. It wasn't hard to realize, though, that for all their tearful reunions, all the hugs and clasped shoulders, there was a clear rift – a barrier – between Noct and his Crownsguard, as if... well. As if they were all invested in pretending that Noct and Ignis had never been lovers, and Noct had no right to hold his face in his hands, take that frustrating visor off so he could see his eyes, kiss him like he was precious.

Every time Noct tried to get close to Ignis, somehow Prompto distracted him with a question, or Gladio had to speak urgently to Ignis. Occasionally Ravus got in on the act, demanding to know what Noct had learned from the gods. Ignis himself seemed aware of the interference and didn't resist, but his attention followed Noct's voice and movements, like a flower turning toward the sun. Noct ached to have even just ten minutes alone with him to find out what had happened, what was going on.

After dinner, they gathered together everyone who'd come to join the assault on Ardyn's stronghold in Insomnia. Cor's latest intelligence showed he'd taken up residence in the Citadel, and he spread out a map to mark out roads that were undamaged and which offered relative protection from the wandering daemons. The roads into the city had been barricaded and were impassable by vehicles; a car would only attract attention anyway, he said. Stealth was a better option.

About half of the people assembled – a mixed group of hunters and mercenaries, including Talcott and Iris – didn't have any assigned roles in the infiltration, but Noct gathered from the somber nods Cor and Gladio gave them that they were Plan B. If he failed and Ardyn won, they'd try to make a stand here against whatever new wave of destruction swept over the land.

Noct wasn't going to let that happen. Not to them, or anyone, no matter how high the price he paid was.

He went over provisions side by side with Gladio after the meeting, inspecting his uniform and weapons, which had all been maintained and kept in perfect order in his absence.

"It's good to have you back," Gladio said. "Fucking Astrals and their ten years of darkness. Though I guess," he added, grabbing a handful of Noct's hair and shaking him gently, "ten years without a bath must have sucked, too."

Noct grinned, feeling resistance from the dirt on his cheeks. "I can take a hint. Especially if there's hot water."

"Not hot, exactly," Gladio said, but he led Noct to the showers around back, and then pointed out the caravan where he and Luna would be staying. "You'll have guards," he said; part reassurance, but also – Noct suspected – a roundabout warning not to make too much noise.

Noct shoved him away and went to scrub off a layer of grime. When he thought he could see his skin again, and his hair felt lighter, he got out and dressed, and then went to see if Luna was already in bed.

He nodded at the guard seated at a picnic table a couple meters away from the caravan door, and got a discomfited _sir_ in reply.

Maybe kings weren't supposed to wear moogle t-shirts.

Whatever.

He walked in, pulling the door shut behind him, and immediately realized he'd interrupted an argument. Doubtless a polite one, as neither Luna nor Ignis were prone to yelling or insults, but they were both tenacious. He loved that about them.

"That's Noct," Luna said, and Ignis snapped _I know_ with his words equally clipped with frustration. Luna tossed her hands up. "I don't understand."

Ignis glanced toward the door, possibly trying to gauge by ear whether Noct was blocking him from escape (he was; it had seemed prudent).

"Please let me pass," Ignis said. "I need to prepare for tomorrow."

Noct swallowed hard against a lump in his throat. "I don't ever want to let you go."

"You already did." Ignis bit his lip, as if he hadn't meant to say that, but the words hang there between the three of them. Luna straightened, her gaze sharpening.

Noct didn't even want to contemplate it, but Prompto had been teasing Gladio about dating earlier. He'd been gone a long time, after all. "Are you seeing someone else now?"

Ignis jerked as if he'd been slapped. "Of course not."

Okay. Okay, then. Noct stepped forward into the yellow circle of light from the bulb overhead, and Ignis could have walked around him and out the door. But he stood frozen and let Noct approach, and didn't pull away when Noct embraced him.

"I still love you," Noct said, hands on the back of shoulders that were even broader than before. "I always will. I'm sorry – " for so many things he didn't know where to begin. "Come to bed."

Ignis turned his head, as if looking in Luna's direction. "Lady Lunafreya," he began.

Luna cut him off. "Tomorrow will be harrowing. At least let us have this night together."

She held out her hand to Noct, who took it, and thus entangled they walked the scant distance to the bed and crawled in under the covers. The space was tight, and they only fit by tangling together. Noct kissed Luna, and then Ignis, and Ignis kissed Luna's forehead and cheeks like a benediction.

Despite how Gladio glared the next morning, all they did was sleep and offer each other comfort. That had been enough; there'd be time for more, Noct hoped, when they'd succeeded in setting the world to rights.

*

Noct's heated battle with Ardyn ended with his immortal body laid to rest at last, cooling on the stone floor of the throne room. Noct turned from him with single-minded focus to ascend to the throne. He only realized once he turned to sit down that he'd been followed. Luna stood at his left, trident in hand and face framed by a halo of hair that'd escaped her braids, with Ravus behind her. On his right, Ignis looked up toward the crystal, as if trying to gauge whether it was close enough for him to tear down.

"Summon your kings," Ravus said, his voice ringing against the walls. "Take the power from them to end this long night."

Noct breathed in as deep as he could, reaching down into himself to the wellspring of resolve that he'd found during his stay with Bahamut. He raised his left hand, with the ring, and spoke the summons: "Kings of Lucis. Come to me."

The room began to populate with ghosts, and he had no time to spare for the confusion of the Glaive and Crownsguard below him. He trusted Gladio and Prompto could persuade them that these were not daemons.

"Step up," Ignis urged him, his hands going to Noct's waist. At the other side of the throne, Luna climbed from the seat to the armrest, raising her trident, while Ravus braced her. Noct followed suit automatically, trusting Luna to know better than he did how sacred rituals were performed.

The kings arrayed before him for a long, solemn moment, and then each flew at him in turn. Like in the tombs, their weapons were aimed at his heart, but this time Luna blocked each with her trident, directing them up to sink into the crystal above. As the power of the Kings returned at last to its source, the crystal began to burn with a purple-white light, the glow brilliant enough to make the walls around them fade from view.

The last king to face them was Regis, and Noct nearly faltered, wanting to say a proper farewell to his father, wanting to ask him if he was proud of the man he'd become. He could see regret etched into the lines on Regis' face, and made himself smile, and nod.

The Sword of the Father came at his heart so quickly that sparks flew as Luna deflected it, and it sank into the crystal to the hilt. The light of the crystal became nearly unbearable, and then abruptly it faded, as the world around them slipped away.

Ardyn was waiting for Noct, there in the beyond, but all Noct felt when he saw him was a deep welling up of calm peacefulness. He held out his hand toward Ardyn, hoping he could take it and release the enmity he held towards the Kings and Oracles who'd wronged him in the past. But Ardyn tried to run Noct through and ended up staring down at the three prongs of the trident embedded in his chest.

When Luna pulled her trident free, fresh water flowed from Ardyn's wounds, dissolving him, bubbling out until he had washed away to nothingness.

"I'm sorry," Luna said. She let her weapon fall, and it too ceased to be. "I didn't mean to."

"It's fine." Ignis sounded harsh, and Noct turned to look at him in surprise. Ignis stared back, lips parting, and then reached out unerring and took Noct's hand, pulled the ring off, and discarded it.

"You can see." Noct knew he was smiling like an idiot, but he was overflowing with happiness. He pulled off Ignis' visor and cupped his cheek with his other hand. He was sure he was no lovely vision: he was dirty from battle, and ten years older. He hadn't had time for a proper haircut or shave.

But Ignis didn't push him away as Noct leaned up for a kiss; instead, he clung to Noct, running his hands over his shoulders and back, sliding his fingers into his hair, watching Noct all the while, as if he was trying to soak up ten years' worth of lost sight and touch.

When Ignis pulled back, with a hand on Noct's chin to tip his face up, drinking in the sight of him, Noct blurted out, "We have to stay together from now on, promise me. I'll follow you, wherever you go. You're never getting left behind again."

"It wasn't so bad," Ignis offered. That sounded like such a blatant lie that Noct nearly laughed. "I knew you would return. I had faith in you and Lunafreya."

"I love your faith," Noct assured him, and kissed him again before half-turning and reaching out to Luna, who'd been gracious enough to allow them this moment but who needed to join in their celebration.

Luna took his hand and let herself be sandwiched between them. Ignis regarded her with curiosity barely restrained by his excellent manners, reminding Noct that he never had seen Luna in person – just photographs in the newspaper, and occasional snapshots taped into her notebook. Luna went up on her toes to kiss Ignis on the cheek, and he replied with a chaste kiss on the lips that made Luna's cheeks redden.

Noct felt so giddy that he wanted to run, or dance, or ride a chocobo through green meadows neverending. But the glow of the crystal around them was thinning, the normal world pulling them back. Noct was eager to return, and find out who he could be, in this future they'd forged together.

He pushed a little, with his innate magic, and felt a jolt go through him as the crystal released him once again from the space between this world and the next. He found himself seated on the throne, with Luna in his lap, her head on his shoulder, and Ignis perched on the armrest with his arm wrapped around Noct's shoulders.

"They're back," he heard Prompto call, and then the garbled sound of Ravus in a fit of temper.

"Sun's coming up, too," Gladio said. "About fucking time."

From where he sat, Noct could look out through the hole blasted in the throne room wall and see the sky growing rosy, a line of molten light flowing across the clouds. He felt Luna raise her head and murmur _It's beautiful_. But Ignis didn't turn to look, not even when golden light began to spill over the broken stones, and Noct felt a queasy thread of unease creep into his happiness.

"Specs?"

"I don't need to see the sun to be glad that the Scourge has been lifted," Ignis said. "And the gods granted me the gift of what I most desired to see. I am content."

"But – " Noct started to protest in distress; Luna pinched him, and he closed his mouth.

A moment later, the first rays of sunlight struck the crystal, still imprisoned in chains above their heads, and it rang with a high, clear note that echoed around the room, the sound building until the crystal became translucent and slipped free of its bonds, falling down and through the three of them with a rush of air like a spring breeze and a feeling of both loss and reverence.

The gods were sleeping once more; the scourge was banished; the crystal had returned to its proper place as the heart of the world. Noct could feel the magic around them waking in strange new forms, rising up to greet the dawn, unleashed after millennia. The world was ripe with potential.

Noct held on tight to Ignis and Luna, and if he was crying when the others made their way up the stairs to pay their respects, he was sure they understood he was just dazzled by the first light of dawn.


End file.
